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Published online: 2024-12-06

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Combined immunotherapy in lung cancer — a case report highlighting immune response dynamics and clinical success

Tomasz Jankowski1, Natalia Krzyżanowska1, Kamila Wojas-Krawczyk1, Paweł Krawczyk1, Janusz Milanowski1

Abstract

Immunotherapy with the use of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) is one of the key therapeutic options in cancer, especially in advanced non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC). The combination of chemotherapy and immunotherapy — nivolumab (anti-programmed death-1, anti-0PD-1) and ipilimumab (anti-cytotoxic T-lymphocyte-associated protein 4, anti-CTLA-4) — has been found beneficial in clinical trials addressing advanced NSCLC. Here, we present a case of a female patient with PD-1 ligand (PD-L1)-negative, advanced squamous-cell carcinoma with a long response to chemoimmunotherapy. The patient had several episodes of adverse events and exacerbation of autoimmune disease. An analysis of immunological background was performed, and it revealed changes in the percentages of certain immune cell subpopulations in the patient’s blood during immunotherapy.

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